The Kingsford® Points Chase

Chasing Kingsford

Lo-n-Slo BBQ and Quau earn Kingsford Points Chase wins!Apr 27, 2011

What started as a joke on his 40th birthday has earned Tom Perelka more than just an “I told you so.” In 2005, Tom’s wife Michele bought him a small, inexpensive smoker for his birthday and said, “If you think you can cook like the pros on the Food Network, have at it.” A few modifications and one contest later, the joke was on Michele – Mike took home fourth place in ribs in his first competition.

Tom and Michele compete together as Lo-n-Slo BBQ and live in New Providence, Penn. The husband and wife team have been competing for six years and have loved every minute of it. They compete in 12 to 14 events each year.

Their team name was inspired by the “low and slow” method of preparing award winning competition barbeque. They may have dropped the “w” in low and slow, but they’ve added a few other “w’s” to their belts -- wins.

Lo-n-Slo BBQ took home fifth overall, third in pork and second in whole hog at Pork in the Park in Salisbury, Md. As the highest ranking team registered in the Kingsford Points Chase, the couple also took home the points chase win.

When he’s not preparing his finger-licking, award-winning barbeque, Tom loves to grill up some seared, blackened tuna. To which he advises, “Before you put anything on the grill, make sure your grates are clean and the coals are a nice gray.”

It may have been the Food Network that inspired Tom to take up professional barbeque, but it was the camaraderie and friendliness of his competitors that kept him coming back.

Quau was also busy last weekend – taking home another grand championship and Kingsford Points Chase win at Rock’n Ribs in Springfield, Mo. Mike and Beth Wozniak also finished first in chicken. Their win in Springfield also brought Quau to second in the KCBS Team of the Year standings.

Mike did share one of his barbeque secrets with Grilling.com – “Cook in organized competitions as often as possible! Only by having your barbeque rated by judges who all have similar training can you get an idea of what needs to be changed or tweaked. Your friends and neighbors are the worst judges; first they don't want to offend you, and second they may not know what is good BBQ.”

Sounds like that strategy has paid off for both Quau and Lo-n-Slo BBQ!